Don’t DIS my ABILITY! – Law At Work to hold free breakfast briefing on Disability Discrimination

Law At Work - the Channel Islands’ leading human resources, employee relations and health and safety specialist - is holding a free Breakfast Briefing on Wednesday 4 July to help businesses understand their legal and practical obligations for when disability discrimination is outlawed in Jersey from 1 September this year.

Disability completes the States’ anti-discrimination legislative programme begun in 2014 and is arguably the most significant addition to the law as, unlike other jurisdictions, the States have radically adopted a social model for its law. This model’s low bar definition of disability coupled with the positive obligations on business to do what they reasonably can to remove barriers and obstacles (including physical features of premises) adversely affecting staff and customers with disabilities makes for significant cultural change and possible budgetary outlay. 

The free seminar will be held at the Pomme d’Or Hotel from 7:30 am to 9:30 am. Speakers will include:

• Sharon Peacock, Technical Director, LAW

A straight-talking take on the need to know points of law and its likely challenges 

• Patrick Guyomard, Health and Safety Associate Director, LAW

Counsel on disability access audits required now in preparation for the coming into force in 2020 of the duty to consider reasonable adjustments in relation to premises

• Martin Buckland, Managing Director, HR At Work, LAW’s UK sister-company 

Lessons learnt from businesses who have been there and survived the last 20 years of UK disability law 

• Guest speaker, Ant Lewis, disability campaigner

Another perspective: my life and how this law could be a win-win  

Kelly Flageul, Managing Director of Law At Work, said: “It appears that businesses and practitioners alike have still not grasped just how radical and unique this law is. The fact it is a social model hasn’t even featured in events designed to increase awareness let alone explored how that removes barriers for staff and customers. Here, we self-govern and complacent reliance on our knowledge of other jurisdictions isn’t going to wash. This seminar is aimed at de-mystifying our new law to help employers and providers of goods and servicers make informed, timely and practical decisions.”   

So, ask yourself, are you fit for purpose? Anyone interested in attending can email Duncan de Gruchy at duncan.degruchy@lawatworkci.com.